Box Office Report: "Men in Black" cart "The Avengers" off

As far as Mays go, I can't truly say that 2012 had it that bad for movies. Of the box office giants that came out this month, the top two are actually quite deserving of the numbers they've brought in. "The Avengers", as many have already attested, is quite a fantastic ride of a character-mash, and "Men in Black 3" honestly had quite a few factors that not only saved it, but made its brand of humor genuinely fun. The two weeks that came between, we'll forget about for good measure. May was a good month for blockbuster movies, though time may still herald "Men in Black 3" as a box office disappointment.

Let's get our facts straight first. $55 million is a fantastic 3-day opening for Barry Sonnenfeld's film, though probably dwarfed by its predecessors if you factor inflation. Even then, it's a damn good figure for the film that they delivered. Now's the bad news. The film is rumored to be budgeted at $215 million, which certainly puts a few odds against this sci-fi comedy. Mind you, it's not nearly as big as the gulf that faced "John Carter", which is forever doomed to be scale against which all megabudget films are held. This won't be a failure, though possibilities on them getting a sequel really do depend on word-of-mouth impact.

Let's check up on "The Avengers", which currently finds itself stationed just over $500 million. By end of June, it will have escalated to $600 million, but don't expect it to get far beyond that the way it has been falling. It'll have to decrease its dipping spectrum if it wants to make it to $700 million in the long haul, but suffice it to say that it isn't the staying power "Avatar" was. So that leaves the other "blockbusters" of the month, which are fading far faster than they would have liked. "Battleship" is en route to a total comparable to "John Carter". "The Dictator" is keeping is faring better in comparison, likely to hold up its small cred in coming weekends. "Dark Shadows" is vanishing (ha ha, get it). Oh, and "The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel" is having one hell of an indie theater run!

1. "Men in Black 3" (First Weekend; $55 million)

2. "The Avengers" (Fourth Weekend; $37 million; $513.7 MILLION TOTAL)

3. "Battleship" (Second Weekend; $10.8 million; $44.3 MILLION TOTAL)

4. "The Dictator" (Second Weekend; $9.7 million; $41.5 MILLION TOTAL)

5. "Chernobyl Diaries" (First Weekend; $8 million)
6. "Dark Shadows" (Third Weekend; $7.5 million; $63 MILLION TOTAL)

7. "What to Expect When You're Expecting" (Second Weekend; $7.2 million; $22.2 MILLION TOTAL)

8. "The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel" (Fourth Weekend; $6.3 million; $16.5 MILLION TOTAL)

9. "The Hunger Games" (Tenth Weekend; $2.2 million; $385.2 MILLION TOTAL)

10. "Think Like a Man" (Sixth Weekend; $1.4 million; $88.3 MILLION TOTAL)